God has placed great gifts in my hands expecting me to use them for his glory

I am blessed. I really am blessed. And that scares me.

It scares me that I have experienced such good health since childhood that in all my 55+ years I’ve never spent a night in hospital. I am not in a wheelchair. I have a sound mind and a healthy body. I can walk, run, jump, swim and ride a bicycle.
It scares me that I have been given a good education. I graduated from high school, earned three degrees and completed several certificate programs-all paid for on my behalf by someone else.

It scares me that I have often been put in places of influence where I have had the privilege of teaching others, expressing my opinion and sharing my ideas both orally and in print.

It scares me that I have a car in my driveway, food in my cupboards, clothes in my closets and money in my pocket.

Why do such things scare me? They scare me because I am acutely aware that Jesus said, “If God has been generous with you, he will expect you to serve him well. But if he has been more than generous, he will expect you to serve him even better” (Luke 12:48 CEV).

I have come to realize that none of the blessings I have received were given to me because of my own merits. They are not rewards that God has given me for my good behaviour. They are not signs of God’s favour on my life. They are unmerited gifts that God has placed in my hands expecting me to use them for his glory. Hence my apprehension.

I wonder, am I using these blessings wisely or foolishly? Am I using them for God’s purposes or for selfish reasons? Do I sometimes take these blessings for granted?
If it is true that “Great gifts mean great responsibilities; greater gifts, greater responsibilities!” (Luke 12:48, The Message), then I will have a lot to answer for on Judgment Day. And that scares me-because it turns my blessings into curses: Because of my blessings I am cursed with responsibility. Because of my blessings I am cursed with accountability. Because of my blessings I am cursed with the threat of judgment.

In The Fiddler on the Roof, Teyve dreams of all the things he would do if he were a rich man:

If I were a rich man…
I wouldn’t have to work hard.
I’d build a big tall house with rooms by the dozen,
Right in the middle of the town … just for show.
I’d fill my yard with chicks and turkeys and geese and ducks
For the town to see and hear.
And each loud “cheep” and “squawk” and “honk” and “quack”
Would land like a trumpet on the ear,
As if to say, “Here lives a wealthy man.”

Teyve’s rabbi reminds him that riches are a curse. “I should be so cursed!” moans Teyve in his poverty. Then he prays:

Lord who made the lion and the lamb,
You decreed I should be what I am.
Would it spoil some vast eternal plan
If I were a wealthy man?

Probably not, but riches might spoil Teyve as they spoil many today who use their blessings of intellect, health, wealth, talent, position and power solely for their own pleasure while turning a blind eye to the needs of others.

Jesus once told a story about a rich man who had so much that he did not know where to put it all. Instead of sharing his good fortune with the needy, he built bigger barns to hold his great wealth. On the day his sheds were completed, he died. “This is what happens to people who store up everything for themselves, but are poor in the sight of God,” said Jesus (Luke 12:21, CEV).

On the positive side, the Bible tells the story of Joseph, the son of a Hebrew nomad, who rose to become ruler in Egypt, second only to the Pharaoh himself, and used his power to save thousands from starvation. Esther, the daughter of Jewish slaves, rose to become queen of Persia and used her position to save her people from slaughter. Paul was a highly educated Jewish scholar who used his gift of intellect to spread the gospel throughout the Mediterranean.

Over the centuries, many thousands of Christians have used their blessings to bless others. Men like Martin Luther, Albert Schweitzer and William Booth dedicated their gifts of leadership and intellect to bless others in Jesus’ name rather than accumulate power and riches for themselves.

In the first Spider-Man movie (2002), Uncle Ben says to Peter, “Remember: with great power comes great responsibility.” It is that responsibility that will either multiply our blessings or turn them into curses. And that is scary.

by Major Fred Ash
Corps Officer, Burlington Community Church, Ont.

Reprinted from Salvationist, October, 2007